Why do I need the Mind Over Bar Course?

You spent thousands of dollars on law school and bar preparation and hundreds of hours of time, all leading up to these few hours. You must be prepared in every way possible.

Mental preparation is ignored by bar takers for many reasons. Some think they can handle it, and others just don’t respect the power of stress. Mental preparation is about learning how to clear your mind under pressure, calm your body down, and mentally handle anything while keeping focus.

Anything can happen on bar day. You never know when your laptop will fail or you wind up sitting next to a woman dry heaving for 2 hours. You need to be prepared for anything.

This course will make you an expert in your own mental obstacles and to teach you to be clear headed in any stressful situation. With this course, you will not be leaving your performance to chance. You will know that you are prepared in every way possible.

Is this a form of psychotherapy?

No, this course does not involve psychotherapy of any type. Students with severe psychological issues that are affecting their performance should seek professional psychological help.

What are Lauren Firestein’s qualifications?

Lauren Firestein knows how it feels to face panic and anxiety while taking the bar exam or speaking in front of a judge or senior partner. She spent years fighting the perfectionism and strong inner criticism that many legal professionals face. Instead of accepting it, she turned her legal research skills inward and began studying mindfulness, meditation, somatic practices, feldenkrais, and psychology, looking for answers.

After years of study, she learned how to conquer the negative thoughts and emotions that interfered with her performance. She learned how to calm her body to rid herself of anxiety, and how to train her mind and body to focus under pressure.

Lauren Firestein is not a psychologist or therapist. She is an attorney who studied for years to develop a set of practical tools that helped her, and can help other individuals challenge and beat the test anxiety and performance challenges that she conquered.

How will Mind Over Bar improve my studying skills?

Most of the time our thoughts and emotions are on autopilot. When we study on autopilot, our mind gets preoccupied with thoughts and emotions and we learn much slower. We may read the same concept 4 times before we learn it, or we may learn a set of elements one day and forget them the next.

When we know how to get off autopilot and clear our mind, we can devote all of our energy to soaking up information, and can literally learn more in less time. Mind Over Bar teaches you practices to use when you study so that you can learn how to work with and clear your mind.

How will Mind Over Bar improve my test-taking skills?

All of your hard work leads up to test day. If you panic, your brain could literally shut down and stop retrieving the law you worked so hard to learn. You need the skills to calm your body and mind down so that you can focus, retrieve the information, and analyze the problem.

With the Mind Over Bar tools, no matter what happens – panic, fear, anxiety, or blanking – you will be able to bring yourself back to focus and perform under pressure.

Why is this course better than simply a relaxation or visualization audio recording?

Learning to relax and visualize is great. But if you panic in the middle of the 2nd essay, that meditation CD won’t save you. This course gives you in-the-moment tools that you can practice and use to improve both your studying and test taking skills.

This course also teaches you the theory behind the practice, so that you can understand how your mind works and how your body operates in stressful situations.

What will I receive when I enroll?

When you enroll in the course we will mail you the companion workbook and a link to download the audio tracks to your device. The workbook includes tips, reminders and exercises that you can use to integrate the material. The audio tracks include 4 short tracks that you can add to your music player to walk you through the practices taught in the course.

Once you enroll, you will receive a username and password. Login on the homepage by clicking on Members Access and click on Lectures or Student Forums.

How long will the lecture videos be available?

You can watch the lecture videos at any time. For the February 2012 season, all videos will be available in the Members Access area until March 15, 2012. In addition, when you enroll you have our support until you pass. If you would like to take the course again after failing, contact us contact@mindoverbar.com and we will reactivate your account at no charge.

How does private coaching work?

You may purchase private coaching sessions at any time. Private coaching is done via telephone or skype with interact with Lauren Firestein, . Private Coaching is not psychotherapy and does not focus on purely psychological issues. Private coaching is an opportunity to evaluate your particular bar performance challenges, and to learn new insight, exercises or strategies tailored to you.

How much time will this course take?

The lecture material consists of 5 lectures, 35-45 minutes each, available on-demand anytime (3.5 hours total). You can decide how much time you would like to spend completing the exercises in the workbook or listening to tracks. We recommend devoting at least an hour a week to watching a lecture and completing the exercises.

Can I take the course again for free if I fail?

Yes. When you enroll you have our support until you pass. If you would like to take the course again after failing, contact us contact@mindoverbar.com and we will reactivate your account at no charge.

How can I earn cash for referrals?

If you refer friends who purchase the course you will receive a commission of $30.00 per friend. You can refer as many friends as you want. Learn more »

Does the course cover substantive law or writing?

No, the course will help you pass by teaching you to handle the mental challenges of the bar exam, and is meant to be combined with a traditional substantive bar course or tutor.

Can I take this course for any state bar?

Yes. The Mind Over Bar course does not cover substantive law, so the course is not state specific. The course can help you pass any state bar.